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Until now, that is. The Los Angeles Ballet (LAB), which kicks off its sixth season Decemeber 3 with The Nutcracker, has slowly evolved into LA's official resident company, renowned for its high-caliber dancers and next-generation repertoire- a mix of old chestnuts and original works by innovative young choreographers. Los Angeles Ballet Awarded Grant from LA County Arts Commission August 1, 2011 Company News from the Staff at LAB Los Angeles Ballet was awarded its first Los Angeles County Arts Commission grant, in support of its 2012 production of Swan Lake. LAB is grateful to LACAC staff, and LA County Supervisors Gloria Molina, Zev Yaroslavsky, Mark Ridley-Thomas, Don Knabe, and Michael D. Antonovich, Mayor. Home / News / New Item

Los Angeles Ballet Continues to Celebrate the Great Romantics in its Tenth Season with a Captivating New Production of Los Angeles Ballet ContinuesTenth Season with a Captivating New Production of Don Quixote February 1, 2016 LAB Public Relations Performances February 20th, 27th & March 26th, 2016 Los Angeles, xx, 2016 – Miguel de Cervante's imaginative hero Don Quixote is brought to life in this vibrant world premiere production by Thordal Christensen and Colleen Neary for Los Angeles Ballet, after Marius Pepita's classic staging. The stage glistens with exuberance and celebration in this ballet set in 17th century Spain. Don Quixote is a joyous ballet filled with the dreams of the Don, the love between Kitri and Basil, and the fantastical quests that inhabit this epic tale. Christensen and Neary’s Don Quixote is a special version for Los Angeles Ballet, true to its history, utilizing the talent and virtuosity of LAB’s dancers. It is a wondrous “pièce de résistance” with something for everyone: humor, romance, adventure and beauty. Following the success Giselle and The Nutcracker , the highly anticipated Don Quixote is LAB’s latest production in a hugely successful 10th season featuring creative retellings of classic favorites. Romeo and Juliet will be the final production of the season. According to Neary, when asked why the Great Romantics theme was chosen: “Celebrating ten years calls for big, beautiful ballets, and what else can that mean but love, passion, and relationships? On a literal note, Giselle, The Nutcracker, Don Quixote, and Romeo and Juliet are very different stories, but of course share the universal theme of love.” Continuing LAB’s mission to offer world-class professional ballet to greater Los Angeles, Don Quixote will be performed at LAB’s home theaters: UCLA’s Royce Hall, Glendale’s Alex Theatre, and the Redondo Beach Performing Arts Center. DOWNLOAD PDF Home / News / New Item

Silk chiffon dresses flutter, crystal-covered rompers twinkle, and sequin-etched gowns shine. Fall Fashion 2015: The Turning Point October 28, 2015 Los Angeles Magazine by Linda Immediato Silk chiffon dresses flutter, crystal-covered rompers twinkle, and sequin-etched gowns shine. Who better than members of Los Angeles Ballet— celebrating its tenth-anniversary season—to showcase fall’s high-drama couture and evening looks? READ ARTICLE AT SOURCE Home / News / New Item

Los Angeles Ballet ended its benchmark 10th season in June as the first American company to dance Frederick Ashton’s distinctively intimate and poetic “Romeo and Juliet.” Unfortunately, that season left the company fiscally overextended, so the 11th season, which opened Saturday, has cutbacks in the roster and the repertory. Los Angeles Ballet At the Top of its Form October 20, 2016 Los Angeles Times by Lewis Segal Los Angeles Ballet ended its benchmark 10th season in June as the first American company to dance Frederick Ashton’s distinctively intimate and poetic “Romeo and Juliet.” Unfortunately, that season left the company fiscally overextended, so the 11th season, which opened Saturday, has cutbacks in the roster and the repertory. That’s disappointing, of course, but the situation forced artistic directors Thordal Christensen and Colleen Neary to capitalize on their bedrock artistic strengths in an invigorating program at the Alex Theatre in Glendale. From Christensen’s Danish birthright came August Bournonville’s antique Pas de Six and Tarantella from “Napoli.” From Neary’s career at New York City Ballet came an authoritative staging of George Balanchine’s wondrous “Stravinsky Violin Concerto.” The directors’ longstanding commitment to new work brought Canadian modernist Aszure Barton’s quirky, challenging “Untouched” to the program too. The celebratory Bournonville divertissement began with a classical abstraction of folklore and then unleashed a nonstop barrage of bouncy, heel-and-toe folk steps. Technical strain from the women and hard landings from the men marred the opening section. But those shortcomings soon yielded to spot-on contributions from the excellent Julia Cinquemani and Kenta Shimizu, as well as Javier Moya Romero and Madeline Houk (replacing the injured Allyssa Bross), plus a stellar newcomer, Tigran Sargsyan, able to project Bournonville style effortlessly at opera house scale. The “Napoli” excerpt also confirmed the growing importance of Dustin True, a versatile soloist previously seen in subsidiary roles but given major assignments in all three works Saturday. In the Bournonville and Barton pieces, you could admire his skill and spirit without feeling he’d outclassed his colleagues. But in the “Stravinsky Violin Concerto,” opposite Elizabeth Claire Walker (replacing Bross), the almost contemptuous force and sensuality of his dancing made it impossible to watch anyone else — even Shimizu and Cinquemani, efficient if subdued in their duet. In a tribute to his friendship with the composer, Balanchine initially reshuffled soloists and small ensembles, then explored two moody, intricate duets before launching a folk-accented finale requiring extraordinary precision from the whole cast. It is one of the prime neoclassic creations of the 20th century and, discounting a few lapses in stamina, the Los Angeles Ballet performance delivered its greatness impressively. Crammed with musical and movement eccentricity, Barton’s 2010 “Untouched” looked at the tensions between group identity and individual expression. For much of the work’s length, the title proved prophetic: Everyone danced in juxtaposition but with no contact. And even when fleeting interactions occurred, the participants remained untouched in a fundamental sense: locked in their own pain and processes. With everyone wearing Fritz Masten’s floral prints, the piece evoked an upscale party at which everyone expected relationships to form but nobody really connected. Along the way, newcomer Leah McCall dominated the stage in a dramatic solo, and Bianca Bulle endured partnering assaults stoically, but everyone in the 12-member cast took to Barton’s twisty, wiggly, off-kilter style as if ballet dancing always incorporated such oddities. Nicole Pearce designed the claustrophobic set (borrowed from Hubbard Street Dance Chicago). Obviously, few would rejoice at Los Angeles Ballet’s cutbacks. But the company’s value stayed resplendent Saturday with no need for more of anything — expect possibly live music. Indeed, this is why we need these dancers in Los Angeles, not for hand-me-down stagings of Russian warhorses but for sustaining the living legacy of modernism (even 19th-century modernism) that has distinguished it for the last decade. The L.A. Ballet program will visit other Southland venues in weeks to come; no doubt, other audiences will see what the Alex audience witnessed: an invaluable community resource suffering growing pains, perhaps, but still near the top of its game. ------------ Los Angeles Ballet In Redondo Beach: 7:30 p.m. Oct. 22 at the Redondo Beach Performing Arts Center, 1935 Manhattan Beach Blvd. In Westwood: 7:30 p.m. Oct. 29 at Royce Hall, UCLA Tickets: $29.50-$104 Info: (310) 998-7782, www.losangelesballet.org Follow The Times’ arts team @culturemonster. ALSO An ode to an avant-garde Japanese dance legend USC celebrates the opening of a $46-million building for dance 40 years of Martin Scorsese movies, mashed up as a concert-musical READ ARTICLE AT SOURCE Home / News / New Item

Bird-watchers flocked to UCLA’s Royce Hall over the weekend as Los Angeles Ballet, now in its sixth season, continued to prove its pointe shoe prowess with the premiere of “Swan Lake.” And while everything was not always picture-perfect Saturday, husband-and-wife directors Thordal Christensen and Colleen Neary, who choreographed the four-act work after Petipa and Ivanov, continue to confound balletic naysayers with their little company that could. Los Angeles Ballet opening weekend of ‘Swan Lake’ March 5, 2012 Los Angeles Times by Victoria Looseleaf Bird-watchers flocked to UCLA’s Royce Hall over the weekend as Los Angeles Ballet, now in its sixth season, continued to prove its pointe shoe prowess with the premiere of “Swan Lake.” And while everything was not always picture-perfect Saturday, husband-and-wife directors Thordal Christensen and Colleen Neary, who choreographed the four-act work after Petipa and Ivanov, continue to confound balletic naysayers with their little company that could. A classic bipolar drama of joy and tragedy set to Tchaikovsky’s sweeping score (heard here, alas, on tape), “Swan Lake” lives and dies -– literally –- by its Odette/Odile, the sweetly vulnerable white swan/cunningly malevolent black swan. (Additional performances with cast changes are on tap in four other venues). A sturdy, stylish corps is also a must. And though Allynne Noelle’s Odette captivated with fragile, fluttering arms and superb footwork (Allyssa Bross alternates in the role), the dancer’s Odile was more smiles than seduction, her Act III fouettés less a study in surety than traveling –- or was it fatigue? One hopes, over time, that Noelle will come to fully embody both avians. The well-drilled corps, though lovely in held poses, is short on emotionally expressive steps, a cygnet requirement for representing unadulterated femininity. In the challenging pas de quatre (Bianca Bulle, Julia Cinquemani, Ariel Derby and Sophie Silna), technique again trumped finesse, another sign of LAB’s youthful makeup. As every Swan Queen needs a noble Siegfried, Kenta Shimizu was not only a gallant partner but also a thrilling soloist. His Act III variations shimmered with airy-as-meringue leaps, his landings rock solid. Also notable: Guest artist Akimitsu Yahata’s Jester generated heat with splashy split kicks, Christopher Revels’ Benno made easy work of his jetés and Christopher McDaniel’s Neapolitan dance (with Isabel Vondermuhll) was sassy and precise. A requisitely nasty Von Rothbart, Nicolas de la Vega as the bare-chested, cape-swooshing sorcerer, boosted the drama, especially in his final death throes. Kudos, also, to Oregon Ballet Theatre’s scenery and costumes: Neo-opulent castle and moonlit forest backdrops accentuated plush royal garb and crisp, sparkly tutus. While this “Swan Lake” may feature a bit of fowl play, its heart is in the right place. Long may Los Angeles Ballet spread its wings. -- Victoria Looseleaf Los Angeles Ballet’s “Swan Lake,” Redondo Beach Performing Arts Center, 1935 Manhattan Beach Blvd., Redondo Beach. 7:30 p.m. March 10; Also: Alex Theatre, 216 N. Brand Blvd., Glendale. 7:30 p.m. March 17; Carpenter Performing Arts Center, 6200 E. Atherton St., Long Beach. 7:30 p.m., March 24; Valley Performing Arts Center, 18111 Nordhoff St., Northridge. 7:30 p.m., March 31. $24-$95. (310) 998-7782. www.losangelesballet.org DOWNLOAD PDF Home / News / New Item

Read at the Los Angeles Times 'The Nutcracker' from Los Angeles Ballet As Los Angeles Ballet matures, so too does its first full-length production... December 7, 2009 Los Angeles Times by Laura Bleiburg Read at the Los Angeles Times DOWNLOAD PDF Home / News / New Item

Continuing her global work as a member of the George Balanchine Trust, Colleen Neary has just returned from Moscow's Bolshoi Ballet where she staged and rehearsed Symphony in C. Next she is off to Portland, Oregon to restage Rubies, a work she originally set there in 2003. Colleen Neary travels to Portland & Moscow January 1, 2008 Company News from the Staff at LAB The ballet ends with a terrible image. Madge pulls the fallen James up by the hair to see his beloved but dead Sylph float up into the heavens. With insouciant flicks of her wrists, Madge then dismisses James’ lifeless form. All in a day’s work, she seems to say, and easy work at that. Final curtain. Home / News / New Item

LAB is excited to announce that in December of 2014 it will present four performances of The Nutcracker at its newest venue - the prestigious Dolby Theatre in Hollywood. LAB to Perform The Nutcracker at Dolby Theatre June 1, 2014 Company News from the Staff at LAB LAB is excited to announce that in December of 2014 it will present four performances of The Nutcracker at its newest venue - the prestigious Dolby Theatre in Hollywood. The addition of this venue continues LAB’s mission to offer world-class professional ballet to greater LA. Home / News / New Item

An elite group of artists called “repetiteurs “ carry on the works of one of the greatest choreographic masters of all time, George Balanchine. For 30 years since his death on April 30, 1983, these human “style guides” for the Balanchine aesthetic have served as guardians of his expansive repertoire of nearly 400 works, and storytellers of his legacy. Passing the Balanchine Baton May 15, 2013 KCET by AC Remler An elite group of artists called “repetiteurs “ carry on the works of one of the greatest choreographic masters of all time, George Balanchine. For 30 years since his death on April 30, 1983, these human “style guides” for the Balanchine aesthetic have served as guardians of his expansive repertoire of nearly 400 works, and storytellers of his legacy. Many have danced the roles themselves under his tutelage, such as Colleen Neary, co-artistic director of Los Angeles Ballet. She, along with about 30 other New York City Ballet disciples -- the acclaimed ballet company that he founded in 1948 -- have the stamp of approval from the Balanchine Trust to stage the choreographer’s works. As such, they travel the world ensuring that professional ballet companies who present Balanchine on their playbill, perform it, just so. “There was always a style and way of dancing the role that was very important to him,” Neary says. “He gave you the freedom to do what you wanted but not to the extreme where it took the piece another direction. And we grew up around that style - we saw what he wanted. We all respect each other but we all have differences in the years we danced with Balanchine and for versions we danced in. When I danced “Rubies” and “Symphony in C” in the same roles as my sister, [Patricia Neary for whom many roles were created by Balanchine], she was a decade before me, and he may have changed it for me, or changed his mind on certain timings. He changed as he went along. We always say ‘Before Death.’ Those are the years we look at. And after he died, things kept changing, so we try to keep it as tight as we can,” she says. Noelle “Rubies” Neary danced as a soloist from 1969 to 1979 in The New York City Ballet under the direction of Balanchine. Like her sister, she also had numerous roles created for her by Balanchine, as well as by other acclaimed choreographers such as Peter Martins, Jacques d’Amboise and others, throughout her career. Now Neary is poised to pass the Balanchine baton to a new generation of dancers at her own company, which she founded nine years ago with husband and former Royal Danish Ballet and New York City Ballet dancer Thordal Christensen. To commemorate Mr. B’s death (as he’s called fondly) and to celebrate his work, Los Angeles Ballet recently launched a Balanchine Festival 2013. Having just wrapped “Balanchine Gold” in March and April, Los Angeles Ballet recently launched part two of the series, “Balanchine Red” across Southern California that runs through June 9. Balanchine Red features his works, “Agon,” “La Valse,” and “Rubies.” The next performance takes place Saturday, May 18 at the Carpenter Performing Arts Center, followed by a night at the Valley Performing Arts Center May 25, an afternoon at the Alex Theatre May 26 and ending at Royce Hall June 9. Each performance is accompanied by lectures prior to curtain by experts in Balanchine’s work, including Kent Stowell, Francia Russell, Lewis Segal, Victoria Loos leaf, and of course, Neary herself. One of Los Angeles Ballet’s principal dancers is Southern California native Allynne Noelle. A tall, lithe figure who crackles on stage, Noelle has been with the company since 2011, coming from Miami City Ballet where she also performed Balanchine under the direction of Eddie Villella, another former principal dancer with New York City Ballet. Kenta, Noelle, “TchaiPas” “I like ‘Rubies’ ‘Tall Girl.’ LOVE Jewels as a whole ballet. Oh, and ‘Tchai Pas’ is fun (that’s ballet slang for 1960’s Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux),” she says, ticking off her favorite Balanchine ballets similar to how someone of a different milieu might rattle off pop music hits. “I really like “Apollo” too, but I’ve never performed it.” In Los Angeles Ballet’s “Balanchine Festival Red,” Noelle will dance the Pas de Deux in the notoriously challenging Agon (1957) an abstract masterpiece in which nary a note is lost on movement; and she will revisit “Tall Girl” in Rubies (1967). The fact that Neary has coached her in a masterpiece that Neary herself has danced for the master is clearly not lost on her. “I was a little scared at first because I know [Neary] has done the role,” she says. “Colleen gives me the freedom to do what I want with the role as an artist, but if there’s a step that isn’t right she lets me know. Even though it’s crazy hard technically, it’s artistically freeing.” Neary is quick to dispel any notion that she expects a cookie cutter interpretation of how she performed the part. “It’s perfect for Allynne. I give her feedback as to how I did it, but I don’t like to say: ‘This is MY role!’; even though you might feel like it’s your role. I want to train the next generation who are dancing the Balanchine ballets and dancing them well so eventually The Balanchine Trust might approve them to stage the ballets. The Balanchine Trust is very tight with [its] mechanism, and typically, they come from New York City Ballet. But I think it’s important for those of us who are with other companies to train the next generation to be able to rehearse his work,” she says. Mr. B, Pat, Colleen. Meanwhile Neary’s next repetiteur “gig” will be with the Paris Opera Ballet staging the original “Symphony in C” called “Palais de Cristal.” Neary also invites other repetiteurs to Los Angeles to stage Balanchine on Los Angeles Ballet dancers. “It’s good for the dancers to work with someone different. Although sometimes it’s hard for me to keep my mouth shut,” she laughs. Noelle, a self-proclaimed repetiteur in waiting, is one of six dancers with Los Angeles Ballet from Southern California. Noelle grew up in Huntington Beach and began classical ballet training at age 5. She remembers limited exposure to professional productions beyond seeing New York-based companies like New York City Ballet, American Ballet Theatre and “the occasional Russian company” breeze through to perform. “The cultural growth (in Southern California) has been exponential since then,” Noelle says. “I’m so happy to be back here dancing in a company that offers the opportunity to perform such great ballets. Last time I was on stage performing ‘Tchai Pas’ I thought, ‘Wow, this is my job. Should I really be having this much fun?’” DOWNLOAD PDF Home / News / New Item

Los Angeles Ballet's Artistic Director Colleen Neary travels to Berlin to give a lecture on the Balanchine Legacy for the German Dance Congress, 2006. Colleen Neary Travels to Germany April 1, 2006 Company News from the Staff at LAB Los Angeles Ballet's Artistic Director Colleen Neary travels to Berlin to give a lecture on the Balanchine Legacy for the German Dance Congress, 2006. She will give a history of George Balanchine, and discuss his revolutionary influence on dance. Included will be a demonstration by the dancers of the Staatsballett Berlin, performing excerpts of the Balanchine repertoire that Colleen has staged for that company. Home / News / New Item

Los Angeles Ballet is proud to announce the addition of a fall program beginning in the 2014/2015 Season, for a total of four programs per season, an expansion from three productions in previous years. Fall Program Added to Annual Season May 1, 2014 Company News from the Staff at LAB Los Angeles Ballet is proud to announce the addition of a fall program beginning in the 2014/2015 Season, for a total of four programs per season, an expansion from three productions in previous years. The first fall production will be Swan Lake, choreographed by LAB Artistic Directors Colleen Neary and Thordal Christensen. Home / News / New Item

Guide for the Arts, the national online resource for complete annual schedules for opera, symphony, ballet, theatres and museums, has named LAB Co-Artistic Director Thordal Christensen the Arts Ambassador... Thordal Christensen Named Los Angeles Ambassador to the Arts February 1, 2014 Guide for the Arts, the national online resource for complete annual schedules for opera, symphony, ballet, theatres and museums, has named LAB Co-Artistic Director Thordal Christensen the Arts Ambassador for 2014-2015. Past Ambassadors have included Eli Broad, 2012-2013, and Marvin Hamlish, 2011-2012. READ ARTICLE AT SOURCE Home / News / New Item